Honorable Mayor and Members of the Hermosa Beach City Council Regular Meeting of July 28, 2020
Title
ADOPTION OF AN URGENCY ORDINANCE AMENDING
AND EXTENDING THE DURATION THE OF TEMPORARY
MORATORIUM ON FORECLOSURES AND RESIDENTIAL
AND COMMERCIAL EVICTIONS FOR NONPAYMENT
OF RENT DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC
(City Attorney Michael Jenkins and
Assistant City Attorney Lauren Langer)
Recommended Action:
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt an Urgency Ordinance No 20-1414U of the City of Hermosa Beach extending and amending the temporary moratorium on evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic and setting forth the facts constituting such urgency.
The Urgency Ordinance requires four-fifths vote of the City Council and if approved, will take effect immediately.
Body
Executive Summary:
California has been in a declared State of Emergency since March 4, 2020 in order to address the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 16, 2020, the City Council of the City of Hermosa Beach declared a state of local emergency in response to the COVID-19 global pandemic and imposed certain orders in response to the pandemic. One such order is the adoption of Urgency Ordinances temporarily suspending foreclosures and residential and commercial evictions for the nonpayment of rent resulting from COVID-19-related financial impacts through May 31, 2020. This moratorium was recently extended to remain in effect through July 31, 2020, allowing commercial and residential tenants to defer paying rent during the effective period due to financial impacts related to COVID-19 and also prohibits most residential evictions with exceptions for those evictions necessary to protect public health and safety.
On June 30, 2020, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-71-20 extending the authorization for local governments to halt evictions of renters impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic through September 30, 2020. Staff recommends that City Council extend the Hermosa Beach commercial and residential eviction and foreclosure moratorium urgency ordinance to prevent uncertainty and confusion for residents associated with multiple state and county regulations governing evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic and to provide certainty for residents on the processes in place to repay deferred rent.
Background:
On March 4, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a State of Emergency to address the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 16, 2020, the City Council of the City of Hermosa Beach declared a state of local emergency in response to the COVID-19 global pandemic and imposed certain orders in response to the pandemic.
On March 24 and April 14, 2020, the City Council of the City of Hermosa Beach adopted Urgency Ordinances which temporarily suspended foreclosures and residential and commercial evictions for the nonpayment of rent resulting from COVID-19-related financial impacts through May 31, 2020. This moratorium was recently extended to remain in effect through July 31, 2020. The current moratorium allows commercial and residential tenants to defer paying rent during the effective period due to financial impacts related to COVID-19 and also prohibits most residential evictions with exceptions for those evictions necessary to protect public health and safety.
On March 27, 2020, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-37-20, which provides a 60-day extension for tenants to respond to an eviction complaint based on nonpayment of rent. As another indicator of the critical need for residents to remain at home, this order expressly preserves local authority to enact any “public health measure that may compel an individual to remain physically present in any particular residential property.”
Effective April 6, 2020, the Judicial Council of California adopted emergency rules amending the California Rules of Court to effectively suspend all unlawful detainer (eviction) and foreclosure actions, unless necessary to protect public health and safety, until 90 days after the state’s declaration of emergency is lifted. If a tenant has already made an appearance in an eviction action, the court is ordered to delay trial for 60 days and continue any existing trial dates for 60 days unless an earlier date is necessary to protect public health and safety. At this point, the Governor has not stated when the state of emergency will be lifted so currently, it is unknown when courts will resume processing these cases.
On May 13, 2020, Los Angeles County Department of Health issued a new Safer at Home Order for Control of COVID-19, which extended the order for people to remain in their residences except for certain lower risk essential business and requires all persons to practice physical distancing of at least six feet apart and wear a cloth face covering whenever they will interact with the public. As COVID numbers began to surge in Los Angeles County, on July 4, 2020, the Health Officer issued a revised order urging residents to remain in their homes as much as practicable.
Cases of COVID-19 continue to rise in Los Angeles County, with a sharp increase in the number of cases and hospitalizations as of June 28. In a 2-week span, the 7-day average rate of positive tests jumped from 5.8% to 9%. July 1 saw the fourth consecutive day of new cases over 2,000. As a result of this new surge in cases, Governor Newsom ordered all bars and nightclubs in LA County to close. LA County Department of Public Health attributes the sharp rise in cases to the reopening of bars and other areas where people congregate. As of July 21, 2020, there were 161,673 confirmed cases and 4,154 deaths in the County. The County Public Health Department is urging residents to remain at home as much as possible and wear face coverings. Los Angeles County is on a statewide watch list, which is preventing schools from opening and cases continue to rise Accordingly, it is necessary to take all possible steps to allow residents to remain in their homes to comply with these orders. This is an ongoing crisis, and restrictions continue to evolve as public health officials learn more about the virus and how to contain its spread. The recitals and findings for the City’s urgency ordinances remain applicable here.
The degree of the health and economic impact of the pandemic is unprecedented and unknown. Millions of people have filed for unemployment, and the City has a tremendous interest in preventing widespread homelessness and supporting the purposes behind safer-at-home directives issued by federal, state and county health authorities, especially since approximately 53.5% of the City’s population are renters.
On June 30, 2020, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-71-20, which extended the authorization for local governments to halt evictions of renters impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic through September 30, 2020. Consistent with the order, the proposed ordinance extends the moratorium period through September 30, 2020, at which time the Council will consider whether further extensions are warranted. The ordinance also more clearly separates out the repayment period from the moratorium period. The eviction protections extend beyond the moratorium period provided the tenant is paying the deferred rent and current rent during the repayment period. During this period of extended moratorium, city staff will explore the need for further changes or revisions to the moratorium ordinances. As the epidemic proceeds for longer periods of time and certain economic sectors open, the City will need to reassess whether the same factors exist that warrant keeping the moratoria in place or whether its terms should be modified.
The web of regulation is complicated, and this situation is unprecedented. The applicable rules continue to change and evolve, and we are monitoring the situation closely. Even if evictions are not being processed through the courts, the value of the City’s ordinance is the repayment protocols after the moratorium period. The practical reality of this situation is that financially impacted tenants will not be able to repay back rent the day the emergency order is lifted, and repayment provisions advance the stated purpose of the ordinance (and the state orders). Given all of the interests at play for both the landlord and tenants, the City may consider extending moratoria in the local ordinance. However, the City is still well-advised to proceed cautiously and slowly in its efforts to protect commercial and residential tenants and manage any risk associated with regulating evictions in the time of a global health pandemic.
Staff will continue to assess the status of the local emergency and the efficacy of the ordinance in relationship to the state and county protections. This will allow the City to revise local regulations as necessary as federal, state and county regulations evolve.
This is a complex and unprecedented area of the law, and the legal analysis underlying these ordinances should also be revisited periodically.
Fiscal Impact:
None at this time.
Attachments:
1. Urgency Ordinance 20-1414U Extension
Respectfully Submitted by: Michael Jenkins, City Attorney
Legal Review: Lauren Langer, Assistant City Attorney
Approved: Suja Lowenthal, City Manager